Coil handling method and apparatus



I 1935- T. R. MOXLEY 1,990,084

COIL HANDLING METHOD AND APPARATUS Filed Dec. 4, 19 31 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR Feb. 5, 1935.

Filed Dec. 4, 1931 3 Sheetg-Sheet 2 r lll INVENTOR Feb. 5, 1935. 'r. R. MOXLEY 1,990,034

COIL HANDLING METHOD AND APPARATUS 7 Filed Dec. 4, 19:51 3 Sheets-She et 5 Patented F b. 5, 1935' UNITE D STATES PATENT OFFICE 1,990,084 S COIL HANDLING METHOD AND APPARATUS Thomas a. Moxley, Steubenville, Ohio Application December 4, 1931, Serial No. 579,060

16 Claims.

The present invention relates broadly to the art of material handling, and more particularly this art as applicable to the rolling mill industry. In the art of metal rolling, and more particularly 5 as practiced at the present time for the cold rolling of hot rolled strip, coils of hot rolled strip are produced, which coils are delivered to the cold rolling mill for subsequent cold rolling.

Inasmuch as the coils vary both in width and diameter, it has heretofore been customary practice merely to drop the same into an open topped box referred to as a coil box, having a mandrel extending thereacross on which the coils V have been supported.

The width of the box has the coils of maximum width. Thus with the narrower coils, a considerable amount of side play has been permitted, which tends to more or less mar the edges of the strip. It also happens at times that the coils are of more or less elliptical shape, thus causing them to move unevenly on the mandrel to such an extent as to produce tion.

what may be termed a hammering ac- This further tends to bend or kink the strip material and detract accordingly from the quality of the finished product.

It is one of the objects of the present invention to provide an improved coil handling apparatus adapted to effectively center coils regardless of their width, and hold them in such manner that the strip material may be uniformly drawn therefrom as required during the rolling operation.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a coil handling apparatus of the character referred to of such construction that it will automatically tend to eliminate the elliptical contour of the coils and impart thereto a substantially truly circular configuration, thus further facilitating the feeding of the material to the mill.

In the accompanying drawings I have shown for purposes of illustration only, certain features of the present invention, which features constitute the preferred embodiment thereof. In the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevational view of a coil handling apparatus constructed in accordance with the present invention;

Figure 2 is a top plan view of the structure 11- lustrated in Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an end elevational view of the structure of Figures 1 and 2; and

Figure 4 is a diagrammatic viewshowing one method of delivering apparatus.

coilsto the 0011 handln In the embodment of the invention herein illustrated, there is provideda supporting frame 2 of such construction as to provide ways or v mesh with similar gears 7 on a longitudinally ex-' tending shaft'8 and effective for intergearing the two screw threaded shafts, whereby they may be rotated in unison in one direction or the other.

For rotating the connecting shaft 8, there is provided a motor 9 effective through a suitable reduction gearing 10 and flexible joints 11 and 12, respectively. The motor 9 is preferably of the reversible typeadapted to be rotated in either direction at will for turning the shafts 4 and 5 insuch direction as to advance the stands 3 toward each other, or for separating the same.

Joumalled in each of the stands is a coil trunnion, which trunnions provide heads 15 effective against the ends of a coil C as illustrated for example in the drawings, and tapered bearing portions projecting inwardly therefrom for engaging the opening in the coil. By reason of the tapered construction, entry of the portions 14 into the cells is facilitated. Entry having been accomplished, the motor 9 is operated in the proper direction for advancing the stands 3 toward each other to an extent sufllcient to bring the heads 15 against the ends of the 0011., During this advancing movement, the coil is automatically centered with respect to the axis of rotation of the sup-.

ports 14. Should the coil happen to be of elliptical contour, the action is further effective for rounding the coil in such manner as to impart thereto a substantially truly circular contour.

By reason of the separate shafts 4 and 5, the stands may be maintained at all times a substantially uniform distance from opposite sides of a predetermined center line, this centering line corresponding to the center line of the mill in which the strip from the coil C is to be rolled. The coilhandling apparatus thus always maintains a coil in proper relationship to the first or entering roll stand.

It is customary in the art to deliver coils to a position adjacent the cold rolling mill on end, as illustrated for example in Figure 4, the conveying means for the coils usually comprising a roller conveyor 16. In accordance with my invention the coils maybe transferred from the conveyor 16 onto a coil turning apparatus including supporting portions 17 and 18 arranged at substanduring the centering thereof.

tially right angles one to the other. The coil having been transferred to such apparatus, it is rotated in the direction of the arrow 19 to bring the coil into a horizontal position in the plane of the I floor F as illustrated in Figures 1 and 3.

The coil is then rolled 'on its own axis onto a curved saddle 20 mounted on a plunger 21, which plunger works in a cylinder 22 whereby it may be raised and lowered at will. The coil having been rolled onto the saddle 20, fluid is admitted to the cylinder 22 and the saddle raised sufficiently to bring the opening in the center of the coil into alinement with the tapered coil supports 14. These supports having moved to supporting position within the coil, the saddle is lowered out of braking contact with the periphery of the coil.

Cooperating with one of the coil supports 14 is a brake 23 of the friction type adapted to be adjusted by a brake lever 24. In actual practice the brake is adjusted to such a position that overrunning of the coil under the pull of the mill will not be permitted, and is preferably such as to exert some degree of tension on the material so as to prevent any kinking or bending thereof.

The advantages of the presentv invention arise from the provision of means for automatically centering and supporting a coil and for automaticallyimparting the desired contour to the coil Further advantages of the invention arise from the provision of a coil handling apparatus in cluding means for exerting a braking action impeding free rotation of the coil to such an extent as to preclude possibility of over-running thereof when subjected to a rolling action.

While I have herein illustrated and described certain preferred features of the invention, it will be understood that changes in the construction and operation of the parts may be made without departing either from the spirit of the invention or the scope of my broader claims."

I claim:

1. The combination with a supporting frame, of a vertically adjustable coil saddle carried thereby, coil supporting means carried by said frame in a position above said saddle and adapted to receive and support a coil, and means offset from said supporting means for simultaneously moving said supporting means toward or away from said saddle.

2. In a coil handling apparatus, a frame, a pair of coil supports carried thereby, said coil supports including tapered coil engaging members adapted to center a coil thereon by engagementwith the walls of the coil opening, meansfor simultaneously moving said tapered coil engaging members toward or away from each other, and heads carried by said coil engaging members to engage the ends of a coil after the tapered coll engaging members are in position within a coil.

3. In a mill having a floor, a coil receiving saddle having; its coil receiving portion lying in substantially the plane of the adjacent floor surface to permit a coil to be rolled over such surface directly onto the saddle, coil centering means on opposite sides "of the saddle and projecting above said surface, means below the surfaceto move the saddle vertically to bring the center of r a coil thereon into alinement with said centering means, and means for simultaneously moving said centering means one toward the other.

4. In a mill having a floor, a coil receiving sad dle having its coil receiving portion lying insubstantially the plane of the adjacent floor surface to permit a coil to berolled over such surface directly onto the saddle, coil centering means on opposite sides of the saddle and projecting above said surface, means below the surface to move the saddle vertically to bring the center of a coil thereon into ,alinement with said centering means, and means also below the floor surface for simultaneously moving said centering means one toward the other.

5. In a coil handling apparatus, a frame, a pair of oppositely screw threaded shafts each journalled in one end of the frame and projecting inwardly therefrom, a gear on the outer end of each, ofsaid shafts, a shaft joumalled in and extending lengthwise of the frame, a gear on each end of said last mentioned shaft meshing with said firstmentioned gears for effecting simultaneous rotation of the threaded shafts, and coil centering supports slidably mounted in said frame and operatively connected to the threaded shafts.

6. In a coil handling apparatus, a frame, a pair of oppositely screw threaded shafts each journalled in one end, of the frame and projecting inwardly therefrom, a gear on the outer end of each of said shafts, a shaft joumalled in and extending lengthwise of the frame, a gear on each end of said last mentioned shaft meshing with said first mentioned gears for effecting simulta-' neous rotation of the threaded shafts, and coil centering supports slidably mounted in said frame and operatively connected to the threaded shafts, there being a coil receiving and elevating saddle carried by said frame intermediate the inner ends of the threaded shafts.

7. In the method of handling metal coils, the steps comprising positioning a coreless metal coil intermediate coil centering and expanding supports, then decreasing the distance between said supports for forcing them into the ends ofthe coil for simultaneously centering the coil and rounding the opening,' therethrough and positive- 1y limiting by means separate from the supports the extent to which the supports may enter the coil. 7

8. In a device for rotatably supporting'coiled strip, the combination of a bed frame, vertical abutment members slidably supported on said frame, frustro-conical coil supporting members rotatably supported on said abutments, a pair of screw shafts rotatably supported on said bed and respectively at their inner ends in threaded engagement with said abutments and at their gasement with said abutments and at their outer ends carrying gear wheels, a power shaft journaled in said bed in parallel relation to said screw shafts, gears fixed on said power shaft respec-,

tively in mesh with said gears on said screw shafts, means for driving said power shaft, and a power jack between said abutments adapted to support and vertically move a coil into axial alignment with said coil supporting members.

,10. A method of handling metal coils, comprising positioning ametal coil on a coil supporting surface at approximately the level of a mill floor. raising said coil supporting surface to position said coil between coil centering and holding means, and simultaneously moving said coil centering and holding means into engagement with opposite ends of the coil to center and hold the same.

' 11. A method of handling coreless metal coils, comprising introducing a coreless metal coil transversely into a position between coil centering and holding means and simultaneously moving said coil centering and holding means into engagement with opposite ends of the coilto center and hold the same and round the opening therethrough. I

12. A method of handling coreless metal coils, comprising positioning a coreless metal coil on a coil supporting surface at approximately the level of a mill floor, raising said coil supporting surface to position said coil between coil centerin and holding means, and simultaneously moving said coil centering and holding means into eneasement with opposite ends of thecoil to center and hold the same and round the opening therethrough.

13. In combination, a generally vertically movable coil positioning device, means comprising opposed supports disposed generally above the positioning device and adapted to receive and support a coil, and means offset from said supports for simultaneously movcoil supporting ing the same toward and away from each other.

14. In combination, a generally vertically movable coil positioning device, coil supporting means comprising opposed stands disposed generally on opposite sides of the positioning device and extending to a level substantially above the same, supports carried by said stands at the upper portions thereof and adapted to receive and support a coil,-and means offset from said supports for simultaneously moving said stands toward and away from each other. v

l5. Coil handling apparatus comprising a pair of opposed coil supports, each comprising a tapered coil engaging member adapted for centering of a coil thereon by engagement therewith at its opening and a head adapted for engaging the end of the coil when the tapered coil engaging member is in place, and means for moving said supports toward and away from each other to bring them into and out of cooperative relationship with a coil.

16. In a device for rotatably supporting and centering coiled strip, the combination of a bed frame, abutment members movable along said frame, coil supporting members carried by said abutment members, screw shaft means threadedly engaging said abutme '1; members and means for rotating said screw shaft means so as to simultaneously move said abutment members toward each other to support and center a coil, THOMAS R. MOXIEY. 

